A piece of an old Poplar housing estate is going on show in an exhibition in Venice.

The chunk of Robin Hood Gardens, an estate near the Blackwall Tunnel, was acquired by the V&A in November after a nine-year battle to save it from demolition failed.

The three-storey section of facade will now go on display at the Venice Architecture Biennale.

The building was demolished to make way for the £300 million Blackwall Reach development, where two bed flats are being sold for £565,000.

The V&A acquired the piece of the building as an example of ‘New Brutalism’ – a style of architecture which used exposed concrete, precast slabs and elevated ‘streets in the sky’ walkways. Robin Hood Gardens’ demolition prompted a huge backlash from architectural historians, who put in an unsuccessful application to get it listed status.

The old Robin Hood Gardens estate, near the Blackwall Tunnel. Picture: Joe Lord

In Venice, the piece of estate will be reconstructured on a scaffold that will allow visitors to walk along the ‘street in the sky.’